Apple experimenting with enhanced quantum dot iPhone displays

Apple is experimenting with enhanced quantum dot iPhone displays according to a new patent.

According to a patent entitled “quantum dot-enhanced display having dichroic filter” filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Apple is experimenting with next-generation screen technology.

The quatum dot-enhanced displays would be capable of reproducing highly accurate and vivid colours.

Made from various semiconductor materials that exhibit special quantum mechanical qualities, the quantum dots are technically nanocrystals that can be tuned to emit very narrow light spectrums.

Nanocrystals’ wavelength and size are inversely related so the larger the quantum dot, the smaller the emission frequency.

When this is applied to colours, the bigger dots tend to generate longer wavelengths like red, but the smaller dots produce shorter, higher frequencies that create colours like violet.

This means the nanocrystals can be tuned to gradually reproduce the entire colour spectrum by varying in size. Current organic based LEDs emit light in a fixed spectrum so are more restricted.

Quantum dot technology could be used in future iPhone models to improve the Retina displays currently used in Apple latest products.

The technology would boost the colour reproduction while brightness would be boosted used prisms and other lighting techniques to create some of the most beautiful screens.

Apple even outlines the semiconductor materials it could use to fabricate quantum dots in a non-toxic manner for consumers.

This patent was originally filed in 2012, so it’s unsure when and if Apple will ever implement the quantum dot technology in its products.